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Duluth Campus
Women's Studies B.A.Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies
College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Women's studies is an interdisciplinary major focusing on three areas of knowledge: women's lives, experiences, achievements, and expression; feminist analysis and transformation of knowledge and society; and the construction and intersection of gender, race, and class.
The major emphasizes the diversity of women's lives and provides a historical and contemporary examination of women of different races, ethnicities, nationalities, religions, classes, and sexual orientations. With liberation, justice, and equity issues of central concern, women's studies provides feminist analyses of the knowledge generated by other academic disciplines and of societal institutions and processes. Women's studies also examines the construction of gender, its intersections with race and class, and its implications for society. Finally, women's studies actively engages students in the generation of new knowledge and areas of inquiry.
The mission of the Department of Women's Studies is to provide a nurturing environment for the whole person--to help each student find her or his own strengths, gifts, and path, as well as to raise awareness about the way that path concerns and connects with others.
Within the women's studies major, students are able to plan courses to meet specific career, academic and life goals. In consultation with their adviser students have specialized in some of the following areas:
1) An applied feminism focus that includes coursework paired with internship to prepare them for a career in social services, public policy, government, activism, or graduate program emphasizing these.
2) A transnational focus that includes coursework representing the wide scope of feminism and feminist scholarship around the globe which connects students with a transhistorical and transnational understanding of women's lives, experiences, political situations, and accomplishments. Students who focus their major in this way are prepared for international careers, policy development, and further graduate academic study.
3) A liberal arts focus allows students to diversify their coursework and develop a broad base of understanding and scholarship preparing them for further work in almost any field of work or study.
Because women's studies is an interdisciplinary major that builds critical thinking, writing, communication, planning and analysis skills, students are able to easily add a second major or minor in another discipline with the guidance of their adviser that complements women's studies and further broadens career and academic opportunities.
Program Delivery
This program is available:
Admission Requirements
For information about University of Minnesota admission requirements, visit the
Office of Admissions
website.
Required prerequisites
Introductory Requirement (1 cr)
Transfer students with 24 or more credits and current UMD students who change colleges to CLA are exempt from this requirement. New first-year students with 24 or more PSEO credits may request to be waived from this requirement.
UST 1000 - Learning in Community
(1.0-2.0 cr)
General Requirements
Program Requirements
Requirements for the B.A. in women's studies include:
* A second field of study (either a minor or another major).
* Advanced writing requirement: WRIT 31xx to be completed before taking WS 4000.
* No more than 3 credits from WS 3891 may be counted towards the WS major.
* No more than 6 credits from WS 3897 may be counted towards the WS major.
* Students may apply no more than 9 credits total toward the WS major from the following courses: WS 3891, 3896, 3897, 5897, and 5991.
Women's Studies Core Courses (17 cr)
WS 1000 - Introduction to Women's and Gender Studies
[LE CAT, LECD C, CULT D, SOC SCI, CDIVERSITY]
(3.0 cr)
WS 2101 - Women, Race, and Class
[LE CAT8, LECD CAT08, SOC SCI, CDIVERSITY]
(3.0 cr)
WS 3000 - Transnational Perspectives on Feminism
[SOC SCI, GLOBAL PER]
(3.0 cr)
WS 3100 - Feminist Thought
[HUMANITIES, CDIVERSITY]
(4.0 cr)
WS 4000 - Seminar
(4.0 cr)
Electives (21 cr)
Take 21 or more credit(s) from the following:
WS Elective Courses
Take 9 or more credit(s) from the following:
·
WS 3xxx
·
WS 4xxx
·
WS 5xxx
·
Electives Outside the Department
Up to 12 cr can be included in the 21 cr elective requirement
Take at most 12 credit(s) from the following:
·
ANTH 3628 - Women in Cross-Cultural Perspective
(3.0 cr)
·
ARTH 2815 {Inactive}
[LE CAT9, LECD CAT09, FINE ARTS]
(3.0 cr)
·
BIOL 2763 {Inactive}
[LE CAT5, LECD CAT05, NAT SCI, CDIVERSITY]
(2.0 cr)
·
CRIM 4323 - Women and Justice
(3.0 cr)
·
CST 1050 {Inactive}
[LE CAT8]
(4.0 cr)
·
ANTH 3080 - Cultural Constructions of the Body
(4.0 cr)
·
ENGL 2581 {Inactive}
[LE CAT, LECD C, HUMANITIES]
(4.0 cr)
·
GEOG 4394 {Inactive}
(4.0 cr)
·
GER 4302 - German Women Writers and Filmmakers
[HUMANITIES]
(4.0 cr)
·
HIST 2357 {Inactive}
[LE CAT7, LECD CAT07]
(4.0 cr)
·
HLTH 3118 - Women's Health Issues
(3.0 cr)
·
POL 3040 - Women and Politics
(3.0 cr)
·
PSY 2223 - Gender in Society
[LE CAT, LECD C, CDIVERSITY]
(3.0 cr)
·
PSY 3215 - Topics in Human Sexuality
(3.0 cr)
·
PSY 3540 {Inactive}
(3.0 cr)
·
SOC 4925 - Sociology of Rape
(3.0 cr)
·
SOC 4947 - Sociology of Gender
(3.0 cr)
·
SW 5271 - Women and Social Policy
(3.0 cr)
Advanced Writing Requirement (3 cr)
Advanced writing requirement to be completed before taking WS 4000.
WRIT 31xx
|
|
Credits: | 1.0 -2.0 [max 2.0] |
Course Equivalencies: | EHS 1000/UST 1000/ ES 1000 |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Every Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Every Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Every Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Periodic Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 4.0 [max 4.0] |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Every Fall |
Credits: | 4.0 [max 4.0] |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Every Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Course Equivalencies: | ANTH 3628/WS 3628 |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Periodic Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Course Equivalencies: | CRIM 4323/WS 4323 |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Periodic Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 4.0 [max 4.0] |
Course Equivalencies: | ANTH 3080/WS 3080 |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Every Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 4.0 [max 4.0] |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Periodic Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Every Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Periodic Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 4.0] |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Every Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Course Equivalencies: | Psy 3215/3216 |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Every Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Course Equivalencies: | Soc 4925/WS 4925 |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Periodic Spring & Summer |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Course Equivalencies: | Soc 4947/WS 4947 |
Grading Basis: | A-F or Aud |
Typically offered: | Periodic Fall & Spring |
Credits: | 3.0 [max 3.0] |
Grading Basis: | A-F only |
Typically offered: | Periodic Fall & Spring |